I hope I can make this post without stepping on any toes…
Ok, my question centers around the seemingly widespread belief that there is an interaction between drugs such as LSD, Mushrooms, or XTC and orange juice. I have heard from many different people in many different places that it is well known that drinking OJ while under the influence will somehow make the “trip” better.
I am posting here because none of these people have ever seemed like the type to back up their assertions with hard proof. In fact, the vagueness of the claim leads me to believe that it is something of an urban myth. Is there anything to it? A pamphlet that came with some “magic mushrooms” in Amsterdam (legal there, not in US) actually cited orange juice as a way to come out of a “too intense” trip. Makes you wonder.
Please note that I am not endorsing drug use, I am more interested in finding out how this belief came into being.
The urban folklore I remember from my wayward college days is that Vitamin C would counteract marijuana, making you less high (not that it would have any effect at all on LSD). But the way to come down from a too-high LSD trip was to take niacin. This belief was based on the sudden blood flush to the head caused by niacin, supposedly it would flush out the chemicals from your brain. I rather doubt any of this has been scientifically verified.
That seems to be the problem, I doubt any attempt to do research on these effects would make it far past the ethics committee. The OJ and MJ connection is a new one for me though.
according to http://www.ucd.ie/~stunion/welfare/drugs.html :
LSD
LSD (acid, trips) is the most powerful hallucinogenic known. It is usually sold as brown blotting paper with cartoon figures. LSD is also sold as brown tablets known as microdots. The effect depends on the person and the amount taken. A trip may give you hallucinations and make you giggly and will heighten your senses. A trip usually lasts for up to 8-12 hours. It all sounds like a right old laugh and a great escape, but do not be fooled by this drug or its cheap price tag. Inexperienced users may feel confused and disorientated and will need reassurance from friends. Others may experience extreme paranoia, which is no fun at all; in fact it can be the most horrific thing you will experience. It is a good idea to drink non-alcoholic fluids when tripping. **If you are having a “Bad Trip” avoid orange juice or drinks with high vitamin C content, as this will intensify the experiences. **The risk of a bad trip is increased if you are already anxious or depressed. Acid is the drug most likely to give you psychological problems and one dose can cause emotional disturbances such as schizophrenia. Flashbacks may occur from a single dose up to five years later.
The only thing I can think of is the fact that grapefruit juice can speed up the absorption of many drugs (medical ones) and people on oral medications should limit their grapefruit juice intake. Perhaps this related citrus fruit works in a similar fashion.
Speaking from PAST experience, OJ did little or nothing to enchance the use of illegal drugs. It was tried with LSD, mushrooms, and Extasy. Tastes great, but I couldn’t discern any difference in the intensity of the experience.
Apparently, this question has been asked before… waaaay back in 2000 in this thread.
I see we are even less forthcoming with answers today.
As it is, mystical orange juice can either bring you down or heighten your experience. I suspect that either one may be the case depending on the bit of urban lore at hand to color one’s experience.
On a personal level I am in complete agreement with Bongmaster.
But try telling that to someone who takes the OJ effect as a matter of course.
I know these aren’t exactly related but I am posting them to show that there is a correlation between vitamin C and MAOI inhibitor drugs. I would have done more as it relates to illegal drugs but that is not a search I will do at work.
The current consensus amongst the clandestine chemistry community, which I monitor purely as an academic effort, out of morbid curiosity, is thus:
The Vitamin C contained in Orange Juice does little or nothing on a neurochemical basis to prolong or intensify the use of drugs such as LSD, MDMA, or Psilocybin/Psilocin. There is some anecdotal and small-scale study evidence to indicate otherwise, but none of these studies were run double-blind. Given the length of time that this rumor has persisted, and the saturation level within the illicit drug use community, any such effects are probably psychosomatic. However, this should not be taken as a blanket statement one way or another. It is very worth noting that with any illicit psycoactive drug, and especially with the trio mentioned above, psychosomatic effects can be as strong as, or in some cases stronger than, neurochemical effects.
Currently, many drug users take Vitamin C to combat the physical or psychological side or after effects of LSD, MDMA, or Pslocybin/Psilocin. There is little more than anecdotal evidence to the effectiveness of this method, but the growing popularity of Vitamin C supplements to combat alcohol hangovers must surely have contributed to the popularity for other, less legally attained, hangovers.
In response to dorkusmalorkusmafia, none of the drugs above mentioned are Mono Amine Oxidase inhibitors. In fact, most of them are Mono Amines. There are no major recreational drugs with MAOI effects.
Please note that use, possesion, sale, and creation of illegal drugs is <gasp> illegal. Drug use wrecks lives. If you desire anecdotal evidence of that, I can provide it.
My past experience has not shown any interaction between OJ and either marijuana or magic mushrooms. I did notice that milk seemed to cancel out the effects of mushrooms, so I drank OJ instead the next time.
My two cents worth about the effects of drugs, illegal in the USA, in the distant past, and their relationship to orange juice.
When I did LSD, I would use two alka-seltzer tablets, dissolved in an ultra-strong glass of TANG orange flavored beverage. Besides making me feel like an astronaut, I also thought it helped the ‘comedown’.